The long-term goal of this postdoctoral training grant is to develop independent investigators who will think critically about problems in the field of cancer biology. They will also have gained a high degree of technical competence in specific areas of cancer research and during this training period have acquired a broad and clinically relevant understanding of cancer as a biological and molecular process. A fundamental tenet of the program anticipates that investigators who study cancer related problems from the context of specific traditional disciplines will be better prepared and more likely to develop creative and realistic solutions than if the program was confined to a single discipline or department. Six fellows will be supported per year. Trainees must have advanced degrees, e.g. Ph.D., M.D., D.M.V., or D.D.S., and the training will be for a two year period. The main experimental training will be carried in the laboratory of the Trainer, each being an experienced researcher with extramural federal funding. Breadth of training will be attained through the association with an interactive faculty representing many basic sciences and clinical disciplines, interacting through Cancer Center based laboratory programs, formal lectures, Cancer Center Grand Rounds and Annual Cancer Center Symposium as well as other informal settings. Investigators at the University of Rochester James P. Wilmot Cancer Center are studying cancer from the point of view of biochemistry, biophysics, epidemiology, genetics, immunology and immune therapy, mathematics, microbiology, pathology, pharmacology and toxicology, physics and radiation oncology. Trainees will attend a graduate level course on "Cancer Biology" which consists of a multi-disciplinary body of knowledge presented in a didactic structure with topics ranging from basic, translational and clinical research topics to cancer epidemiology and is designed specifically to provide the broadest basis for cancer research. Trainees must also enroll in the course entitled "Ethics in Research" and are expected to attend the weekly Cancer Center Grand Rounds and research program meetings. RELEVANCE: By providing outstanding training and preparation for young scientists, this program will facilitate advances in basic, translational, and clinical cancer research and will foster improvements in treatment and prevention of cancer.